ALESSANDRA The next day, Leo and I escorted our siblings to the airport terminal. The air between us was filled with tense silence as we exchanged hugs. Leo and Dante simply patted each other's backs while Mia and I brawled our eyes out, not caring about the attention we attracted with our cries. Although I had tried my best not to cry, the sight of my sister holding her bag made me emotional once again. Frankly, I couldn't imagine being so far away from her, but I knew this was for her own good. The last thing I wanted was for my father to hurt her too just because she was staying with me. “Call me when you land.” I forced myself to release her. She looked so tiny in her oversized hoodie and sweatpants, making my heart ache with reluctance. “Take care of yourself, and don't let Father force you into doing anything you don't want to do.”Mia nodded obediently and replied. “You should also take care of yourself. Don't allow anyone to bully you just because they think they own you.”
ALESSANDRA When we were younger, I was scared by Leonardo's intense thoughts. Although I enjoyed dating him in front of my friends and family, not many people knew how difficult he was to deal with. He had always been very possessive and short-tempered, but there was nothing that prepared me for his unique line of thoughts. There were times when I couldn't understand what he was thinking or the reasoning behind them. Like now. I stared at him, trying to understand what he was trying to say, but he refused to even make eye contact with me. He seemed pretty serious, which made the situation even scarier. He wants us to make a baby? Now? What the hell was he thinking?!“Having a baby is not going to solve our issues, Leonardo.” I said softly. Something about his deposition made my heart clench, but I didn't want to waver now. “If you're worried about me running again, that's not going to happen.”Leonardo spared me a glance for the second time during our car ride, and the pain in his
LEONARDO Shit. My mind raced, searching for a solution to remedy the situation, but nothing seemed to wipe away the look of horror on my wife's face. She had somehow discovered the truth, and now she kept staring at me like I was a monster. The very same thing I had dreaded since the day I put a ring on her finger. I wanted to tell her to stop looking at me like that, but my pride didn't allow it. So I let my lips pull into a maniacal grin as I said, “It's what he deserves for showing up in my house to mock me. There's no way I'm going to let him breathe the same air as me again, Alessandra.”My wife parted her lips for a split second before she closed them again. I could tell she was also thinking something, but I needed her to understand me. He was the reason why she lost our baby, and if it wasn't for the fact that I had to stay behind, I would kill him myself. “Why do you have to be the person to finish him?” Her voice was low, soft like a whisper when she pleaded with me. “M
ALESSANDRA As soon as we entered the apartment, Leonardo pulled me against his body and covered my lips with his own. I moaned softly and buried my hands into his hair, needing to touch him skin to skin. He kissed me like I was his air, the only thing he needed to survive. My skin felt feverishly hot as he ran his hands all over my body. He had no idea how much I had been craving him since the night he forgave me. All I wanted was his mouth and arms on me, kissing and touching me just the way I wanted. “These clothes need to come off, baby,” he coaxed.I stepped away from him and started stripping, getting rid of my skirt and panties, followed by my shirt and bra. I knew this was him trying to be considerate since he had always ruined my clothes in the past when we had sex. But the thing is that I didn't want him to be gentle today. I needed to feel his breath on my skin and his hands in my hair. It was a bit ironic how I couldn't wait to escape from him in the past, but now all I
ALESSANDRA After Leonardo left, I stayed behind and tided the apartment to keep myself busy. It was extremely difficult to get rid of the image of that dead mafia soldier from my mind, but by the time I was done with Mia's room, I had somehow managed to convince my brain to forget all about it. But I grew worried when I saw it was already 7 p.m. and my husband still hadn't returned. The first thought that appeared in my mind was that he was fucking Valentina, but I quickly dispelled it. Leonardo might be a lot of things, but he was not that type of person. “Great,” I muttered to myself. “Now, all I have to do is keep convincing myself of that until he returns.”When it finally reached 9 p.m., I couldn't stay still anymore, so I reached for my phone to call him. A noise of frustration escaped my lips when he didn't pick up. I leapt from the couch and started pacing back and forth. After much deliberation, I decided to call someone else. The phone barely rang before it was answered,
ALESSANDRA I woke up the next morning with a loud yawn as I stretched my body across the bed. It felt so good rubbing against the silky sheets, but that pleasant feeling ended when I realized that Leonardo wasn't beside me. I rose from the bed, scanning the room until my eyes landed on the male figure emerging from our walk-in closet. He greeted me with a faint smile as he moved towards his bedside table. “Buon pomeriggio, tesoro mio,” he leaned in and kissed my forehead softly. I watched his hands fiddle with his gray, striped tie in a stupid, lovesick face. He chuckled when he saw it and moved past me. I suddenly realized what he was trying to say and turned to the wall clock behind me. “It's already afternoon?!” I gasped. “Yes, it is.” His voice tinged with amusement as he prepped his gun. Once he checked the bullets and all, he tucked the weapon into the back of his shirt and continued. “I planned to leave early, but you kept clinging to me like a monkey, so I decided to exte
ALESSANDRADespite Leonardo's threats, I chose to defy him because I’m not good with orders. Knowing how much he hated it when I took too long in the bathroom, I went ahead with my full skincare routine and even did some shaving.Deep down, I hoped he would give up on taking me along, but that didn’t work. After thirty minutes, I emerged from the bathroom to find him sitting on the bed.Guilt gripped me when I saw he was still waiting, so I rushed into our walk-in closet to get dressed. “Hey, I know you said ten minutes, but I promise I’ll be done in five—”“How long has this been happening?” Leonardo growled. My heart skipped a beat when he lifted my phone, showing a familiar message on the screen.How the hell did he get past my phone password?I smiled to lighten the tension. “It’s not that big of a deal, Leo. You shouldn’t concern yourself with it. I can handle it—”“Anyone or anything that threatens you is a fucking big deal!” Leonardo roared. “Why didn’t you tell me you’ve been
ALESSANDRA When we finally reached the underground bunker Leonardo told me about in the middle of the city, I was completely stunned by the sight I saw. Several dangerous men walked back and forth doing their jobs in the cold, rigid morning air. Some of them were carrying some wooden boxes from the underground boxes while the rest loaded them into the backs of the trucks. I had never seen anything like it before. Father had been very quiet about his business when I was growing up, and he didn't even let Mother interfere with it either. All I knew was that he had many enemies, and the money we spent for our lavish lifestyle was nothing but dirty money. As the car finally pulled to a stop, the men suddenly stopped what they were doing and immediately gathered in front of the car. My heart raced when I saw them bow their heads towards us, offering a silent greeting. Leonardo's fingers curled around the car door handle, but he didn't open the car door like I'd expected. Instead, he tu
LEONARDO After making the phone call, I got up from the bed and grabbed a packet of cigarettes and a lighter from the bedside table. I walked to the balcony to clear my thoughts and plan my next steps for handling some unfinished business. The night sky was starless, clouds covering half of the bright moon.I lit a cigarette in my mouth and took a long drag. The nicotine sent a heady rush to my brain, making me feel much light-headed than before. The throbbing headache began to fade away as I released a puff of smoke into the air. Giovanni, my dear stepbrother. I had to admit he had done a very good job hiding in the dark like a cockroach. But if he thought he could reap my pained efforts and take over my mafia organization, then he clearly had a death wish. Now that I have talked to Charles, one of my clients who worked in the city's administrative office, there was no way he was going to survive past the week. As the mayor's defense secretary, Charles had major connections with
ALESSANDRA A week later...I ate breakfast and was reading a novel when I suddenly received a phone call from Rocco. Anxiety gripped my heart as I picked up the call and said. “Hello, Rocco.”“Leo has woken up, and he's been asking for you.” He announced. “I'll text you the address so you can come visit him immediately.”I shot up from my seat. “Really? I'm coming!”My heart pounded in my chest as I changed my clothes and rushed into the waiting car. When we finally arrived at the location Rocco sent us, I was already a bit dizzy from anticipation as I entered the house, ignoring the guards’ greetings. I just wanted to confirm it myself. I needed to see him with my two eyes and touch him with my fingers to convince myself that he was truly awake. After taking several turns in the large house, I finally found Isabella in the hallway. As I closed the distance between us with hurried steps, I called out to her. “Isabella, where's he?”Isabella pointed at the door near her with a smile
ALESSANDRA By a few minutes before six in the morning, Henrietta finally emerged from Leonardo's room, wiping her hands with a white handkerchief. She and Cortez looked exhausted, though Cortez tried to hide it better than Henrietta.She yawned and said, “He's out of danger for now. But he still needs to be checked for any other internal injuries and broken bones.”I turned to Cortez. “Is there something you can do about this?”“I'll make some calls to find someone in the city to help us,” Cortez replied grimly. “But that means we'll have to move him if possible.”I suddenly understood why they had been beating around the bush when speaking to me. The thought of Leonardo not being nearby sent a cold shiver down my spine. I needed him close, and I couldn't trust anyone else right now. I didn't want him out of my sight until he regained consciousness.A undercurrent of tension and unspoken words passed between me and my enforcer as we stared at each other. Henrietta's eyes darted betwe
ALESSANDRA After what happened to Keith, Rocco and Cortez decided to conduct another identity check of every single person staying was in the private house. I stayed behind, personally watching over my unconscious husband alone while they carried out their operations.Although I had been very firm and strong on the surface when facing Keith, the truth was that I was extremely shaken by the extent of my Father's vicious plans. If I had arrived a second later, I would have surely lost Leonardo. So who could I trust now? Who exactly was my ally and my foe here?A knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts. Since the knocks were light and gentle, I already had an idea who was the visitor was so I called out, “Come in.”Isabella poked her head in and said, “Cortez wanted me to tell you that he's going to personally fetch a doctor to treat Leonardo.”“Alright, thank you.” I replied. After carefully examining Leonardo's injuries, Rocco and I had come to the conclusion that his life w
ALESSANDRA When I finally arrived at the address Isabella sent me, I rushed into the house to see Rocco talking to Cortez. He leaned against the wall, one of his hands holding his abdomen while he chugged down large gulps of whiskey from the bottle. I approached them quickly and asked, "Where's Leonardo? I want to see him right now.”“He's now receiving treatment from Keith.” Cortez replied. With a single glance, he grew alarmed as he pulled me close. “Is something wrong? Were you attacked?”I shook my head. “Not me. But I think Leo's in danger.”Rocco frowned. “What do you mean?”I told them what my younger sister, Mia had told me. The expression on both their faces was not pleasant at all, but then Cortez finally said, “I have already tightened security around the place, but I'll do an extra round just to make sure no one sneaks into the place.”“I'm afraid that person is already in this building,” I snapped, running my hand in through my hair. My mind raced as I thought deeply ab
ALESSANDRA I paced back and forth in the living room of my private residence that evening, waiting for some news from Rocco and the rest. As soon as Sofia gave me that address, we held a meeting as soon as I got home. Rocco folded his arms and stared at the note on the table. “How sure are you that this isn't some sort of trap? We can't afford to have them ambush us.”I smiled reassuringly. “That's why we have Cortez here.”“Yes,” My second mafia lieutenant confirmed, stepping forward. “I'll have a few police officers on standby for backup, so they don't have the upper hand over us.”“But that would actually leave us defenseless here.” Rocco protested. “Well, it's not like they know our new mafia headquarters, and I'll just hide here until you guys return, so don't worry about it.” I assured him. When there were no further objections, Rocco finally fell silent, so we were able to make a very meticulous plan to save Leonardo. That evening, I stayed at home with my phone glued to my
ALESSANDRA On the last day of the ultimatum, I sent word to Sofia to come for a meeting. Isabella and Rocco tried to convince me to wait until the ultimatum was over, but I just couldn't wait anymore. The previous night, I had a frightening nightmare that the couple had delivered Leonardo's corpse to me. That dream had scared the shit out of me that night, so I decided to take care of this mess once and for all. “What am I here, Alessandra?” Sofia questioned. Apparently, she wasn't pleased to be summoned on a Saturday because she had plans with Giovanni to go shopping. “Did you call us to give some good news about our agreement? Where's Dante?”“He's not here, and I didn't tell him anything about the deal you offered me.” I said. The couple's eager faces instantly dropped when they heard my words, but I didn't care. I came here for a mission, so I wasn't going to rest until I fulfilled it. Sofia slammed the table and fumed. “Then it means you are prepared to see your husband again
ALESSANDRA After waiting for several days, Cortez finally returned with news about his investigation. According to him, Sofia was an orphan from the city of San Remo who snuck out the country illegally through a stowaway. She was then caught by a prostitute smuggling ring and worked for them for four years before she met Giovanni, who paid for her freedom. “Are you sure that's all you have about her?” I asked Cortez. A wave of desperation and helplessness gripped my heart when I discovered he had brought nothing useful like I'd hoped. Today was the second day after Giovanni had given us that ultimatum, but I still didn't have anything on him or his woman. The clock was ticking, and I feared Leonardo's life would soon be forfeited if I didn't do something. Cortez glanced away before nodding, “Yes, that's all I could find. You can ask somebody else to search if you'd like.”I observed him for a few more seconds, trying to see if I could actually trust him. After the little disagreem
ALESSANDRA Silence enveloped the room after my confession. Cortez didn't look as surprised as I would have imagined while Rocco's expression darkened as he tried to process what this revelation would mean for his friends. “Your father killed his brother?!” Isabella half-asked, half-screamed. I understood her reaction the most because I had struggled to live with the secret for years. In the mafia, everyone did anything they could for power and money. But there was one concept that was sacred to all, something that allowed them to preserve their last sense of humanity. Family. Both betrayal and murder of one's kin were frowned upon, and if someone dared to touch another's family, then that person was definitely prepared to go to hell and beyond that. That's why most grudges were always settled with a person's death. "I'm so sorry, Alessandra.” Isabella wrapped her arms around me as my vision blurred with tears. Rocking me gently, she added, “Now it makes sense why you didn't wan